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Pre A Servicing / Repair issues UK. Help!

I have a Pre A Marina. I have recently tried two local but well regarded watch repair workshops locally. I live in Wales in the UK. Both facilities regularly repair and service high end watches, but probably do not see oldish Panerai's very often, if at all.

Both have been unable to repair and service my watch citing that they are unable to get parts as parts supply is restricted by Panerai. I simply do not know if this is true.

I have been led to believe that older Panerai are not best serviced by the official Panerai workshop as they are not sympathetic to older watches and i've read that attempting to keep watches as original as possible is best achieved by using a knowledgeable independent repair specialist.

I have been recommended two repair facilities in London, Tallerman and Steven Hale. I do not have any experience with either of these businesses. Both it seems have sizeable waiting lists and London isn't exactly close.

Would I be better off putting the watch into my local Panerai retailer and hoping for the best parts wise, or would I be better off taking it to an independent specialist who may or may not be able to get parts?

I have a Pre A Marina. I have recently tried two local but well regarded watch repair workshops locally. I live in Wales in the UK. Both facilities regularly repair and service high end watches, but probably do not see oldish Panerai's very often, if at all.

Both have been unable to repair and service my watch citing that they are unable to get parts as parts supply is restricted by Panerai. I simply do not know if this is true.

I have been led to believe that older Panerai are not best serviced by the official Panerai workshop as they are not sympathetic to older watches and i've read that attempting to keep watches as original as possible is best achieved by using a knowledgeable independent repair specialist.

I have been recommended two repair facilities in London, Tallerman and Steven Hale. I do not have any experience with either of these businesses. Both it seems have sizeable waiting lists and London isn't exactly close.

Would I be better off putting the watch into my local Panerai retailer and hoping for the best parts wise, or would I be better off taking it to an independent specialist who may or may not be able to get parts?

Thanks

Pete

Although I haven't any experience of Pre-A Panerai, I'd just take it to your local Panerai AD and get them to send it of to the UK PASC for you. I wouldn't like to trust it to an independent for the reasons you've already encountered. They're also handy as they'll liaise with them on your behalf and they organise the transportation, insurance etc. included in the cost of the standard service. Any additional costs that aren't covered in the service (and they've fixed a couple of very poorly watches for me at no additional cost), they'll contact you before doing the work so you get to control everything. Better than taking a chance as far as I'm concerned.

I have a Pre A Marina. I have recently tried two local but well regarded watch repair workshops locally. I live in Wales in the UK. Both facilities regularly repair and service high end watches, but probably do not see oldish Panerai's very often, if at all.

Both have been unable to repair and service my watch citing that they are unable to get parts as parts supply is restricted by Panerai. I simply do not know if this is true.

I have been led to believe that older Panerai are not best serviced by the official Panerai workshop as they are not sympathetic to older watches and i've read that attempting to keep watches as original as possible is best achieved by using a knowledgeable independent repair specialist.

I have been recommended two repair facilities in London, Tallerman and Steven Hale. I do not have any experience with either of these businesses. Both it seems have sizeable waiting lists and London isn't exactly close.

Would I be better off putting the watch into my local Panerai retailer and hoping for the best parts wise, or would I be better off taking it to an independent specialist who may or may not be able to get parts?

Thanks

Pete

Hello,
I don't understand why a specialized watchmaker could not repair a Pre-A.
Unless you have to change parts like the crownguard, crown, case, bezel.
For the mechanical parts of the 6497-2 movement they are pieces/parts that any watchmaker can buy, they are 6497-2 Unitas/ETA parts and they are identical Panerai or not Panerai except for the bridge but we never change an ETA CDG bridge (even I can buy them ...). Anyway you don't want to distort your watch by changing parts like hands, dial, movement bridge. So I will go through a specialized watchmaker rather than Panerai to master the parts to replace.
Best regards.

Although I haven't any experience of Pre-A Panerai, I'd just take it to your local Panerai AD and get them to send it of to the UK PASC for you. I wouldn't like to trust it to an independent for the reasons you've already encountered. They're also handy as they'll liaise with them on your behalf and they organise the transportation, insurance etc. included in the cost of the standard service. Any additional costs that aren't covered in the service (and they've fixed a couple of very poorly watches for me at no additional cost), they'll contact you before doing the work so you get to control everything. Better than taking a chance as far as I'm concerned.

I have a Pre A Marina. I have recently tried two local but well regarded watch repair workshops locally. I live in Wales in the UK. Both facilities regularly repair and service high end watches, but probably do not see oldish Panerai's very often, if at all.

Both have been unable to repair and service my watch citing that they are unable to get parts as parts supply is restricted by Panerai. I simply do not know if this is true.

I have been led to believe that older Panerai are not best serviced by the official Panerai workshop as they are not sympathetic to older watches and i've read that attempting to keep watches as original as possible is best achieved by using a knowledgeable independent repair specialist.

I have been recommended two repair facilities in London, Tallerman and Steven Hale. I do not have any experience with either of these businesses. Both it seems have sizeable waiting lists and London isn't exactly close.

Would I be better off putting the watch into my local Panerai retailer and hoping for the best parts wise, or would I be better off taking it to an independent specialist who may or may not be able to get parts?

Thanks

Pete

They cannot get parts like dials, hands, seals etc.

If they need generic parts for the 6497-2 it should not be a problem because these are readily available. If they need parts that are specific to Panerai then you run into issues.

If you want to have the watch serviced by Panerai you can specify that the dial and hands should not be replaced but this can sometimes be a problem if the tritium is starting to flake or crack. Before leaving your watch for service be very specific and put into writing what you do/do not want done and have the AD confirm with Panerai whether they can accommodate you. I would also recommend taking accurate photos of the watch to document it's condition before releasing it to service.

I have a Pre A Marina. I have recently tried two local but well regarded watch repair workshops locally. I live in Wales in the UK. Both facilities regularly repair and service high end watches, but probably do not see oldish Panerai's very often, if at all.

Both have been unable to repair and service my watch citing that they are unable to get parts as parts supply is restricted by Panerai. I simply do not know if this is true.

I have been led to believe that older Panerai are not best serviced by the official Panerai workshop as they are not sympathetic to older watches and i've read that attempting to keep watches as original as possible is best achieved by using a knowledgeable independent repair specialist.

I have been recommended two repair facilities in London, Tallerman and Steven Hale. I do not have any experience with either of these businesses. Both it seems have sizeable waiting lists and London isn't exactly close.

Would I be better off putting the watch into my local Panerai retailer and hoping for the best parts wise, or would I be better off taking it to an independent specialist who may or may not be able to get parts?

Thanks

Pete

I've been down this road with my 29A at the Miami AD ... PASC service center will service the watch, but the hands are automatically trashed and replaced with service hands (in this case Luminova) which will not match the color of the dial numbers ... and now your collectible loses a chunk of value!

Option #2 ... If you send it to actual Panerai in Neuchatel for servicing or for certification ... they will not work on Tritium dials ... period ... I believe the word used by my AD is "it's illegal in Europe" ... something about inhaling Tritium dust while working on dials and hands ..... so the dial and hands would be trashed and replaced with service dials (Luminova).

Panerai no longer stocks any hands nor dials with tritium on them .... this is a huge problem for use collectors with Pre-A or A series models.

Your only option is to have the hands and dial gently removed and them sending the watch for service to Panerai .. or find a local reputable WS that will do this and preserve the dial and hands without damaging the tritium whilst removing the hands